The Florida League of Cities honored Rep. Eddy Gonzalez (R- Hialeah Gardens) with a 2013 Defender of Home Rule Award at its 87th Annual Conference in Orlando.

“I am honored to receive this award from the Florida League of Cities,” said Gonzalez. “This organization has supported me from the time I was a city councilman. I will continue to support the League, and the 401 cities it represents, in its efforts to protect home rule powers.”

The prestigious award was presented to Gonzalez for his tireless efforts to advance the League’s legislative agenda and protect the home rule powers of Florida’s cities during the 2013 legislative session. Recipients of the Defender of Home Rule Award are legislators who consistently voted and advocated on behalf of the League and its members.

“Rep. Gonzalez is a true friend to local governments. Like the League, he believes the level of government closest to the people should have the power to make decisions that affect the quality of life of the citizens they have been elected to represent,” said Florida League of Cities Legislative director Scott Dudley.

Gonzalez was elected to the Florida Senate in 2006 and previously served as a councilman for the City of Hialeah and a member of the City of Hialeah Water and Sewer Department Board. He is a past recipient of the League’s Home Rule Hero Award and a member of its Federal Action Strike Team (FAST).